Tips on Teaching: Evaluation Issues

Evaluating Student Learning

Making Tests: Some General Principles. This diagram indicates (1) some different purposes of tests that are helpful to recognize at the outset, (2) four levels of topics that need to be addressed when creating a test or set of tests, and (3) the relationship between course goals, teaching and learning (T/L) activities, and assessment and feedback.

Guide for Reviewing Plans for Evaluating Student Learning and Worksheet for Evaluating Student Learning. The first big step in evaluating student learning is to recognize that you need to use different mechanisms for evaluating different kinds of student learning. That means you first need to identify the different kinds of learning you hope to general in your course; then, for each kind of learning, identify an appropriate means of evaluating that kind of learning. These two forms offer a way of reviewing your general plan for assessing student learning in the whole course. The "Guide" offers a series of questions to work through; the "Worksheet" provides a format for listing the different kinds of learning and then checking to see if you have the right means for evaluating that learning.

Planning an examination. The second big step is to plan an individual test. Many professors have found this two-dimensional chart helpful when planning an exam. For something like a mid-term or final, you would list 3 to 5 main topics that were studied during the preceding period (~A,B,C). To use it, you then do the following (click here to view chart):

1. Indicate what percentage of the whole test you want to devote to a particular kind of knowledge on a particular topic, i.e., for each cell. You do NOT have to put something in each cell; some cells may be blank with a 0% weight.
2. Then you can total the rows and columns. This will allow you to review the relative weight you put in each row (i.e., on each topic) and in each column (i.e., on each kind of learning).

If these total 100% altogether and you are satisfied with the balance, you are ready to start writing questions for each cell. Now you know how many points to allocate for each category of learning. There may be one question for each cell or several questions. If you are not satisfied with the balance, adjust the weights in the cells to achieve the desired balance, and then you are ready to write questions.

Criteria for evaluating individual test questions. Once you have planned the whole exam as described above, you are ready to write individual test questions. This sheet offers some suggestions for writing good multiple-choice questions and essay questions.